Star crossed
by Oran M. Kamishorr
Summary: A civilian on Reach sets up a radio to contact her friend on the other side of the planet, while a Sangheili soldier attempts repair on a machine meant to intercept transmissions while on their way to glass Reach. By a cosmic–scale accident in wiring and understanding, the two end up believing they are talking to one of their own race somewhere else in the galaxy while in contact.
1. Chapter 1

**Part One**

"Jamie," was called and barely heard over the tangle of wires that insulated the room. Many, many wires surrounded simple human hands, sautering copper together in a reconstruct.

"In a moment," Jamie replied, and cut some black electrical tape to wrap around the new connections. It was in place quickly, if not carefully, before Jamie ran downstairs. The family members and guests waited at the bottom of the stairs. She greeted a few aunts and uncles, her last surviving parent, and a few others before she reached Steven– an old friend from when she was younger.

"How is it on the other side of the planet?" She asked him.

"It's the same as all the other sides," he replied as if he'd actually visited them. She knew he barely had enough money for leisurely travel. Many people spent any extra money like that in a patriotic attempt to aid the war efforts.

"I figured you'd say that," She almost took time to look down, but her eyes led back up with a "I finished the radio, though, and it's linked to that old satellite."

"That old UNSC one? I thought you could get in trouble for that!" He whispered, almost angrily and almost to hush her– but also intrigued.

"Oh fool, they're not using it, I've monitored it for weeks. They're not even checking up on it," She spoke aloud as if almost to assure him that it wasn't a secret.

"I'm pretty sure that's also illegal," Steven laughed.

"All I need now are your coordinates and we'll be talking over the coolest old fashion radios our money could not buy."

The celebration continued as dull as it had started, and somewhere in the farther sides of the atmosphere, something much more important was happening. Fleets of covenant were moving in, but even with slip–space they had only just begun their journey from where they loaded up the ships. It could be weeks before they'd actually arrive on Reach.

The fleets were still relatively undetected, especially to the Reachlings who still felt as if the war was far–off. They hadn't felt the heat on their personal home front just yet, and wouldn't until it was too late to stop it, let alone escape.

But the party would roll on. It would roll on until small favors were handed out and all finally left Jamie's house– all, save for Steven.

"You got those coordinates?" She asked as she closed the door behind the second–to–last visitor.

"Yeah," he sighed, "I'll punch 'em in for you."

But, speaking of the fleet in the farther _reach_es of space, there was a particular ship near the very end of the lineup that was of particular significance. It mostly carried a plethora of low ranking soldiers– those who barely deserved the taste of battle and served no tactical help to be deployed anywhere else in the order but last to clean up the mess the rest of the fleet makes before the planet gets glassed. They'd be lucky to see a fight, let alone chance lady luck for the honor of dying in battle properly. Of course, the grunts on board were thankful for that fact.

It contained mostly grunts and jackals, but had a few low ranking elites on board, and a Field Marshal Ship Master Elite to look over everybody. The field Marshal was named Sama'i Gamee, and shared a bunk with the lowest ranking Elite on the entire ship– Ilamaj Zuri, a basic Sangheili Minor. The captain's quarters that Field Marshal Gamee previously inhabited were trashed by a war–crazed "Unggoy," who's severed head was promptly displayed just out of arm's reach above the Grunt's barracks the next morning.

The Field Marshal was stuck with Zuri because he was the only Elite with a convenient extra bunk, since Zuri's last roommate was impressively shoved out of the airlock– which caused a second Grunt's head to be removed and displayed next to the first one. There were three above the Grunt's barracks, total. The third used to belong to the Unggoy who broke the age–old translation and code–cracking device on board the ship by chewing the wires out. Of course, that didn't matter as much strategically, as the ships near the front of the fleet were the ones decoding human military transmissions and relaying orders anyways.

The machine worked by basically typing words in and it'd spit translations on the screen in a dialogue that the user would understand. But, of course, it didn't work anymore.

Zuri wanted it to be fixed though, because despite it being an incredibly glitchy and old piece of junk, he wanted to know what the human military transmissions were, regardless of the orders he'd receive from the front of the fleet.

"These damned wires," Zuri fumbled with the back of the device. He was hoping to fix it to the smallest degree, even.

"Having trouble, Zuri?" His commanding officer asked as he entered, which made Zuri jump to his feet in surprise and drop whatever wires he was holding.

"Honerable Gamee, my apologies, I did not notice you!"

"Be eased, Zuri, there's no consequence. I hope that machine is running soon, after all. I'd want to know if we were detected."

"If I may, sir, we're never detected," Zuri looked to his CO with what could only be interpreted as a grin. He also took his commanders verbal queues to heart and returned to trying to repair the machine.

"Careful, Zuri. Though we know their intelligence is inferior, they're rumored to be much more useful than Unggoy," the commander moved across the room to check out the rest of the computers on the main deck. "You're welcome to move the machine to your quarters if you think you'd make more progress," Field Marshal Gamee nodded in his fellow Sangheili's direction before walking away to attend to checking up on the rest of the ship.

Zuri felt compelled to follow Gamee's advice in the matter and figured he'd be less interrupted by the rest of the crew– and any other potential awol–minded grunts who felt the need to try and give an old fashion coup d'état every other evening.

It wasn't too much of a struggle to move the entire console with Zuri's strength, and it soon took up a large space in the quarters where he and Field Marshal Gamee slept.

As soon as it was set down, he started looking at the wires again. He accidentally pulled two apart, cursed, and hoped he wouldn't need those. With that wire out of the way, though, a glimmer of metal made him spot a group of wires far in the machine that had obviously been chewed by slobbery Unngoy teeth. He figured those would be important, but found himself cursing again because he didn't have a tool to fuse the wires back together.

He looked around curiously to see if there was anything in the room to use instead of having to go get one somewhere else on the ship and his eyes fell on his commanding officer's Plasma sword mounted on the wall.

He could use the heat to easily put wires back together, wouldn't have to leave the room, but would also be risking trouble for the misuse of a sacred sword. His Commanding officer could walk in the room at any moment, but before Zuri could work out the pros and cons, his hands were reaching for it. He looked toward the door, nervously as he reached for the first set of wires.

With it in his hands, he easily fused the wires back together in the front and was about to work on a second set when the door slid open. There his commanding officer stood, holding a clipboard. Gamee looked at Zuri, looked at the plasma sword, then back to Zuri. He shrugged and walked by Zuri to retrieve something out of a drawer. Zuri practically held his breath before hurriedly turning back to the wires to repair the last of them and put the sword back. No matter how calm Gamee looked, Zuri felt he was in helluva trouble.

After that, he found a few wires that could plug into the ships main interface, and output them into the wall behind him. The machine whirred to life and caught the attention of Gamee.

"Is it running now?" He asked as he headed for the door again.

"I'll figure it out," Zuri grinned. He was happy he got anywhere with the machine. He looked to the Field Marshal as he left, but Gamee wasn't smiling back at him.

"I expect nothing less," and the door closed.

The rest of the ship must have been in terrible order, too, for Gamee to be so angry. In the short time Zuri had spent with him, he learned that Gamee was the cheeriest Sangheili he'd ever met.

Zuri turned back to the machine. He knew it at least turned on now, but there was no telling how the machine would act now. He didn't know if the translations would be damaged or maybe it would fail to pick up any messaged whatsoever.

**Hello?**

Words popped up on the screen. It was the only thing to show up, the rest of the screen was black.

**Are you there?**

The words now showed up under the previous ones before disappearing. He shrugged– impressed that he received anything at all. He wasn't sure _what_ he was receiving, though. The interface should have had two sides, one with a translation and one with the original transcript. This, however, just showed random translations. It could either turn out to be useful or useless like that. He tried to type commands into the terminal to pull up another window or interface, but nothing else would appear. He typed "Pull Dialogue" into the terminal, hoping the computer would respond.

**What?**

More translations popped up on screen.

**Who is this?**

Zuri thought for a second. He had no idea who was sending this transmission. Still, he figured it wouldn't hurt. On Jamie's end, a little dialogue box was the only part of her radio that was working. She was curious why the radio wouldn't receive the audio from the 'other radio,' as she had assumed it was, normally.

"I am Ilamaj Zuri."

**Am I not supposed to be on this channel?**

"I sure don't mind."

**Oh, how are you, Ilamaj?**

"Zuri, please. I'm fine, please identify your person."

**I'm Jamie Trell, a civilian, bored out of my wits.**

Zuri paused for a second to think. He thought it strange that a civilian would have such an odd name, or have any sort of name close to having an 'ee' suffix without being military personnel. He figured it could be some kid playing on a radio somewhere in the universe. Hell, he didn't even know if he was talking to a Sangheili or a Jiralhanae or an Unngoy or some sort. Still, he was curious what device or satellite they were using.

"How did you reach me, Trell?"

**I hooked up this radio for long–range, I guess you picked up my signal.**

"You hooked up a radio? A civilian?"

**Yeah, all by myself. It's not that impressive.**

"It's a wonder you're not in the military– or are you?"

**I'm not very athletic, so I'm not military. They only want the best.**

"That makes sense. So why hook up this radio of yours?"

**I was trying to contact a friend who lives far away, but it looks like I found you instead.**

"Lucky you."

**Yeah, sorry about that.**

"It's not much of a problem, I was trying to fix a machine that translates human speech."

Jamie laughed on her end, seeing nothing wrong with misunderstandings. She wasn't new to not being able to understand herself, too.

**They get hard to understand, don't they?**

"Extremely, and they're so… stupid."

**Don't be so negative; they're not that hard to deal with.**

"I guess your right. You sure know a lot for a civilian."

**I'm the smartest girl I know.**

"Girl? I've never heard of a female setting up a radio that could contact a military ship."

**I did, though. You're on a ship? How's the war going?**

"It's going according to plan, so far. We're waiting to land soon. It will be weeks."

**Is it boring on the ship?**

"Extremely, and the crew is less than acceptable."

**That must be torturous.**

"Yes I've been on this same ship for months with no sign of battle."

**That long with a bunch of idiots?**

"Not exactly, my commanding officer is of much respect, but as I said the crew is less than acceptable."

**That's good. Maybe you and your CO can become friends.**

"It makes me want to die in battle."

Zuri stared at the screen a little too intently, waiting for a reply. He hoped to impress the female with talk of an honorable death.

**It can't be that bad.**

Zuri was disappointed, assuming she was still talking about the crew and ignoring his comment about battle. He performed the equivalent of a human sigh.

"Trell, you are strange."

**I'm told that often, but people usually call me Jamie or Jay.**

When Zuri thought about it, her name was strange, too. He considered her being an Unggoy, but then thought again. An Unggoy wasn't that smart, and neither were most the other covenant races. She had to be Sangheili and female– a male Sangheili would be on a ship or a battlefield at the moment. He didn't want to consider that the female would dare work outside her assigned or proper roles. He knew for a fact that no Sangheili woman would be assigned any sort of mechanical radio– especially not a grade radio that could reach him, but he pushed that aside because he wanted someone to talk to.

He pushed aside any red flags in his mind, and figured that at worst, it could be a Sangheili on one of the other ships messing with him. His stomach dropped when he thought about how they'd know his name, but he figured he could always claim it was yet another rogue Unngoy who stole and took hold of the machine.

"Jay it is." He typed.

**So can I call you Ilamaj instead of Zuri since we don't have to be so formal?**

"I guess."

**Ilamaj sounds so exotic. I'm surprised we speak the same language.**


	2. Chapter 2

Jamie leapt out of bed the next morning after hearing the radio blip at her for ten minutes straight. "Okay, okay... I'm coming…" She yawned and kicked her chair out of the way so she could stand in front of the screen. It just said "Jay" over and over and over again. She sighed and gave a little smile.

**Yes?**

"Good morning, Jay."

**Good morning, Ilamaj :)**

"What is that?"

**It's a– oh gosh you really must be foreign. It's an expression of happiness.**

"Oh, really?"

**It's popular.**

"Oh"

":)"

**You woke me up early, Ilamaj, do you need something?**

"No."

**You can't hear me, but I just sighed. **

"I figured you'd gotten enough sleep by now."

**It's been six hours, Private Zuri, I'd like more sleep than that.**

"You've had enough."

**And you're needy.**

"Are you irritated? You showed an expression of happiness."

**I just thought for a second you needed to tell me something, or that something happened.**

"No, I just wanted to talk to you."

**Are you that bored? Don't you have better things to do?**

"No."

Jamie sighed again, she really was getting a little irritated, but she didn't have much anything else to do either. Work was slow, and she worked by commission, which she hadn't gotten a new one in almost a week. Most days during which, she spent talking to Ilamaj over the radio.

**Why am I so interesting to you?**

Jamie waited anxiously at this one. She was, after all getting a lot of immediate attention from someone so far away.

"I… don't know."

**Is there a lot to do on the ship?**

"Not really…"

**Oh so that's it.**

Disappointed, Jamie sighed.

"What's it?"

**You're only talking to me because you're bored.**

"...Were you not doing the same?"

**That's… True. I guess I didn't think of it that way.**

"We are on equal footing, you and I."

**At least on the level of /why/ we're talking.**

"I would like to believe it is so on all levels."

**I don't know about that, Illimaj, I feel that you're probably physically stronger than me.**

"Blasphemy."

That last part made Jamie laugh.

"I would like to bet we are equals on all levels."

**Blasphemy.**

She threw that word back at him, laughing. She thought herself so clever. He, on the other hand, was taken aback by how bold she was being.

**You're in the military and I can't even do a push-up.**

Zuri had no idea what a "pushup" was, but maybe it was some clan thing. It was at least obvious to him that she was trying to make a point. He was a Jar head, but not _that much _of a Jar head to not read context clues. Though, he thought of himself smart because of it, so he was at least _that much_ of a Jar-head.

"I'm sure you would fare fine against me."

**Against?**

Jamie was confused, but, she could only translate it one way in that moment: _was that sexual?_ She took her hands off of the keyboard while she waited for the next reply. What else was "against?" supposed to mean? Even if he meant wrestling it still implies _bodies and friction_.

"You know, like sparring."

_Cultural differences, cultural differences,_ she reminded herself about six or seven times before she could calm down and try and communicate with him again. _Maybe it's just not a Reach thing, _she considered, but she couldn't fully wipe the former ideas from her mind.

**Do you... spar with a lot of girls?**

"Well… no,"

**So… am I the only girl you've asked this, or…?**

"In a long while, I suppose. Yes."

**And you mean **_**sparring**_** sparring, not like… anything else?**

"I am not sure what else I would be referring to."

**So like… fight, spar, wrestle, /that/ sort of sparring?**

"Did I say something wrong?"

**No, I just wasn't sure if we were talking about the same thing.**

"How would we not be?"

**Well, don't you ever say one thing and secretly mean another? Like… a codeword?**

"A codeword."

**Yes, like a nickname, but like a commonly used codeword, or you just say it sort of similiar to a code word, so it implies it is one?**

"I am confused. Does it mean something else or does it mean what it means?"

**Lets just move on.**

_Cultural differences. Cultural Differences._

**You must have a very honest society where you live.**

"People find ways to be dishonest regardless. There is much bloodshed in some regions. One has had trouble with backstabbing and banishment recently."

**Oh, that sounds terrible.**

"I assumed it was the same for you."

**No, it's quite peaceful where I live.**

"I would appreciate a place like that."

**Is the ship not peaceful?**

"We've been having trouble on the ship with Unngoy."

**With a what?**

"Unngoy."

**Repeating it isn't going to make me know what it is any more than the first time you said it.**

"I don't really know how to explain it…"

**It must be some sort of military thing, right? Are you allowed to be telling me about this? Is it a /codeword/?**

"I was never told specifically not to mention them."

**Is it some sort of /super weapon/?**

"As if. They're useless. We have to use them, though."

**Even if they might ruin the ship?**

"Yes."

**Don't you have someone to fix stuff like that?**

"We were supposed to have an engineer on the ship, but I'm not sure what happened to that. Maybe he was the guy who was put out the airlock."

**Someone was put out the airlock?!**

"Because of the Unngoy."

**No wonder I heard we're doing bad in the war.**

"You heard that? Where?"

**Just around, I have a few military friends. They're not happy.**

"So you… talk to a lot of other Males?"

**Males? Not really… Mr. Zuri, are you hitting on me?**

"Mr?"

**God forbid you hit on a girl over the radio instead of in person. Shame on you.**

Zuri spent the next few moments trying to decode her speech. Did she really wish shame upon him? What did M–R–dot stand for? Was that some sort of title- was that what her clan used to denote military personnel? He theorized about it a little, it would explain why she could have a name ending in "-mie," which sounded eerily close to the more popularized "-ee" that was used only for the names of military personnel.

Jamie backed away from the Keyboard, though, it really did seem like he was hitting on her now. He was interested in who she was_ talking to_, which is a lot different than talking to her just out of boredom. There was a chance that it was all just a curiosity more than anything else, but she couldn't get it out of her mind that maybe, just _maybe_, he might like her a little bit.

"Shame on me?"

**Not really shame. It's one of those codewords I guess.**

"So shame stands for something else?"

**It means… well…**

"It means well?"

**No, I'm just having trouble describing it. Especially without the enunciation of it… similar phrases to it all sound the same if you don't know it.**

"But… you know what it means but cannot say it? Is it bad?"

**It could be, depending on how you'd see it.**

"I do not understand."

**If it were something… unrequited… like possible one-sided affection.**

"Affection itself is positive."

**One-sided can hurt someone, and if I somehow believed you were expressing that interest in me… and was responding with the same…**

"That sounds positive."

**So... you do have an interest in me?**

"I am highly interested in you. You are interesting."

The phone by her desk started to ring. She tried to type a reply quickly, but she couldn't get to it very quickly at all. It seemed like it was a request for a commision that day. After jotting down everything she needed she typed something real quick to Zuri so that he'd know she'd be busy for a little while.

No matter how much she wanted to ask more, she _would_ have to eat the next few weeks.

Most of the way would be quiet, but the hardware store would be accompanied by a call from Jamie's mother. Jamie sighed as she threw a few bolts into her handbasket and answered it.

"Hey moooom," she dragged on as she entered another ailse.

"Electromagnetic… electromagnetic…" she said under her breath as she looked.

"Jamie! How are you?" Her mother's voice was loud and eccentric. Certainly too loud for the volume Jamie's phone was set to. She had to move it away from her ear and then back again.

"I'm good mom, just shopping for a commission. They want something Twenty-Second Century. How are You?"

"I'm doing good. That satellite thing work with Steven?"

Jamie grumbled at the sound of it. The damn satellite thing that didn't want to work. She almost forgot how much fun she'd been having with it since.

"Not really. It hasn't been working and I haven't called him," Jamie shrugged and looked at some old versions of Holographic screens. She waved down an employee to ask about a smaller, more archaic size.

"Aw honey I'm sorry."

"But! I met someone new recently who's also been fooling around with radio equipment- some military guy who's kind of foreign," Jamie couldn't keep herself from smiling. She felt blessed her mother could not see her.

"He's not going to report you, is he? Honey…" Her mother started to sound concerned.

"Mom, I actually think this military guy might have a _thing_ for me," she corrected her mother as an employee returned with the screen she needed.

"Really? You with-? Honey you know we're at _war_…" Jamie's mother put the emphasis on war as if it really changed anything for Jamie. Jamie didn't see too much of a difference.

_Anyone could die any day._

"I know, I know- but like- this never happens! And I'm actually kinda hittin it off, y'know?" Another aisle, only a few more items left. She wondered if the reprimand would last the entire shopping trip.

"Just be careful about it, alright. If you get too attached and the first time you meet him he's in a casket-"

"Mom!" Jamie gasped. _You don't say things like that_, _even informally it just sounds wrong._

"I'm just saying this because you might not have thought about it."

"I _have_ thought about it. I've thought about all of it," Jamie allowed her voice to raise a little.

"Have you been using that old radio equipment to talk to him?" Her mother asked as if it was an accusation.

"...I thought that was obvious?" Jamie's confusion actually make her stop walking in the middle of an aisle.

"Jamie! What if someone starts thinking you're an insurrectionist? They'll be less careful and forgiving right now than last time."

Jamie didn't need to be reminded of last time, when she had UNSC officers knocking on her door and asking about how she'd bought too many red flag items in one week.

They thought she was going to build a bomb.

"I have a right to use my own equipment, Mom, it's not like I've been doing_ actual_ suspicious activity," she shrugged and grabbed a new set of 2100s wire. It wasn't like an old satellite could actually hurt anybody- and he wasn't selling her military or tech secrets.

"Be careful, though, is all I'm saying," her voice sounded concerned- stern- parental. Most of all, it felt annoying to Jamie.

"I _am_," Jamie gritted her teeth at the phone. She wasn't a baby, she was working a job and generating her own revenue, and she didn't need her mother to police her decisions.

"Mom I gotta go, something's catching on fire. Gotta be super careful and put it out," Jamie said sarcastically before hanging up on her mother. She tossed her phone into her bag and walked to the checkout.

She was going to continue talking to Ilamaj Zuri, it wasn't a bad idea to her, and it wasn't going to cause her trouble.

Something similar was brewing elsewhere, though, if not too similar to be true.

* * *

"Field Marshall," Zuri started.

"Gamee." Field Marshall Gamee corrected him.

"Gamee… are we doing bad in the war?" Zuri tried to at least hesitate, but the words fumbled out of his mouth all too easily.

"Where might you have heard that?" The Field Marshall turned, relaxed his mandibles, and tilted his head. Zuri has his full attention, and Zuri did not like that.

"What if I heard it from a Sangheili? What would that mean?" Zuri asked nervously.

Gamee sighed and leaned his arm on his leg joint, "Some… some Generals on our home planet were against the war… but a low ranking officer wouldn't technically be allowed to know that. So… forget about it." Gamee tried to end the conversation there, hoped to leave it to rest.

Zuri looked down at the floor, he had found something out he wasn't supposed to.

"Is morale low on Sanghelios?" He asked, almost shocked. He'd never seen a Sangheili be very defiant against the war, or at least not one very open about it.

"In some places, yes morale is low, but you shouldn't let it get to you." Gamee's shoulders hunched as he leaned away and closed off. The less Zuri knew, the better.

"Gamee… I have another question," Zuri asked, still looking at the floor.

"_Yes_?" Gamee responded, clearly annoyed.

"Would it be wrong to… incite a feeling of some sort… over minimal contact?"

"What do you mean?" Gamee spun around, completely confused. His demeanor changed, which made Zuri feel better, most likely because they'd switched topics entirely.

"When you spend a short time with someone, but you want them to be okay. You feel connected in some way. Is it wrong?" Zuri finally looked up from the floor, some genuine form of both curiosity and honesty was visible to Gamee. The field marshal could see that something must have happened.

"I wouldn't think it strange. There are a great many of soldiers I have felt respect for over a short, short time." He nodded, some form of smile was almost visible, but Zuri could not read the field marshal's smile.

"Would it be wrong to feel anything other than respect?" Zuri looked away.

"With a _soldier_?" Gamee spat, surprised.

"No, with like a civilian, if I were to send a letter to her, and care about her a lot after only one reply." Zuri could feel something warm about his words as they slipped from his mandibles.

Gamee sighed, relieved. "Nothing wrong with that_. Did you send some form of letter to a female Sangheili_?" Gamee almost sneered, both proud and mocking at Zuri. Sort of the human equivalent of when a family member finds out you have a secret significant other.

"Something like that," Zuri felt blood rushing to his mandibles, "It is nothing."

"It is not nothing," Gamee tilted his head. His words were soft, comforting.

"I have little experience with things of that nature, but… if you ever need anything, I would not mind trying to help you figure it out," He nodded and tried not to let one word linger too long, should it become more awkward that it already was.

"As a… fellow soldier?"

"As a… as a friend." Gamee hesitated, but he nodded. He might not have been the most open back towards Zuri, but he genuinely wanted to help any way he could.

"A friend…" Zuri clicked his mandibles together He hadn't thought he could consider the Field Marshall a friend. "Do you…? Do you know if there is some other meaning to 'sparring' besides fighting?" Zuri asked. He was a little more comfortable and figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"What?"

"In any way at all?" Zuri wrung his hands together a little bit.

"It would have to depend upon the context to which it was said, but I don't think it could be interpreted strange in normal conversation," Gamee's brow crumpled and he looked around. Zuri had the strangest conversation topics.

"That was what I had hoped," Zuri seemed to become more perplexed regardless.

"You really have me curious, Zuri, you speak of such strange things."

"I have been thinking strange things, Field Marshal."

"Gamee," the CO corrected once more.

"Gamee," Zuri repeated with a nod. After Zuri had exhausted his questions, and assumed he'd done the same to Gamee's patience, he decided to find something other than speaking with his CO or messing with the machine to entertain his downtime.

He looked forward to communicating with Jamie again, but he knew it could be awhile. The deck probably needed to be patrolled or something anyways.


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a week or so since civilian Jamie Trell had accidentally contacted Iamaj Zuri, yet they both had felt something of a friendship forming. Since Jamie's relatives and friends all lived relatively far away, and Ilimaj didn't_ always_ feel comfortable talking to his CO casually, their communication became habitual– something that they were both drawn to. One might even say that their entire friendship was habitual– it was faceless, it was easy, but that was what made it so curious and comfortable.

Jamie loved being able to finally use her radio gear in a practical way, even if it never reached that one friend of hers on the other side of Reach. She figured she'd be able to reach him if she messed with the settings a little and re–entered his coordinates, but she feared she'd lose speaking to her newer friend if she did. Besides, if he was bothered with it he would've called her already.

Ilamaj, though through coincidence, genuinely wanted to communicate with her.

Ilamaj, on the other hand was reluctant to for anyone to find out that he was in _direct_ contact with a girl. He'd probably get teased, reprimanded, and then tossed out the airlock if anyone found out. So whenever someone walked in, he made sure they never noticed the screen. If they ever saw and asked, he'd prepared an array of excuses that he was _testing the interface_, or that _the machine was totally busted_. Regardless of that, he still feared what would happen if it were discovered– talking to a civilian wasn't _bad_, but he was sure it'd be very easily misunderstood.

Ilamaj Zuri tried to wonder how Jamie hadn't been claimed yet in any way– she was capable and smart. He started to consider once again that it was someone playing a trick on the other end. Maybe Jamie was a really hideous, scarred Sangheili, or a rogue or an outlaw. She did have strange things to say about her own culture, and she ignored the ideas of dying in battle often, even showing disdain at one point. What clan was she _raised_ in! But… maybe she was concerned for him instantly, as he had become concerned for her.

Still she'd had some strange, instinctive things to say, and even if they didn't always match what he thought, they were at least interesting. Of course, their conversations were the only real entertainment on the ship, so it's not like he had an easy choice to read it or not. And when he started to realize he really enjoyed the conversations– _the horror_! If it really were a big prank he'd be off all the worse.

He considered trying to maybe find her once he got back home if he didn't die in battle. He started to think that maybe he didn't _want_ to die in battle–_ blasphemy_! How could he think such things! Sometimes, he tried to think about what she'd look like– what color her mandibles were, how good she'd be at fighting and if they could wrestle, and how long it'd take for her to solve an Arum. Of course, only one of those was really about appearance, but he had barely anything to go on. His thoughts were a pool and much that he sifted through was about her, so it didn't matter anyways,

"What do you look like?" He typed into the console one evening.

**You dreaming about me, Ilamaj? **Popped up on the screen as it always did, within mere minutes of his prompting. She'd been waiting by the machine more and more that week.

"A little bit, but... I can't get the image right."

**Well, I'm… medium height, dark skin, dark eyes, small nose. I look sort of average, I guess.**

"Dark eyes… small nose… huh…"

**What do you mean "huh?"**

"You sound to appear gorgeous."

Of course no matter what Jamie said, there was nothing preventing Ilamaj from imagining the most beautiful Sangheili he'd ever seen. _Average? As if! She was obviously being modest, _he thought to himself. _Any beautiful Sangheili woman who is of good heart is modest- and Jamie is of good heart I can tell._

**You're being too kind. I doubt I'm the kind of "female" you are interested in.**

"Have I not already stated expressly my interest?"

**Yeah, but you also seem to think I'm pretty or something.**

"Are you not?"

**Like I said, I'm average.**

"I adore average."

**You're just saying that to flatter me.**

"I am not. You are likely more than average, and even if you were there are many advantages to average."

**Like?**

"Being at least minimally attractive to the eyes is worth more than nothing. It prevents competition from others. It is peaceful. And you are probably worth far more already based on your merit of skill alone."

**I'm having trouble. Is that a compliment or an insult?**

"A compliment, entirely."

**If you say so.**

"You should have more pride in your species. We are a great people."

**I mean considering what we're competing with, maybe, but I'm still not sure what that has to do with me.**

"A great people would have a very lovely average."

**If only that were truly the case.**

"The things we consider pretty are mere inventions. Average is what we are, what we all look like."

**I have a hard time believing humans to be so great.**

Zuri scoffed on his end. _Yeah, she's right, humans are extraordinarily beneath us. She's finally getting my point. _He took this as a sign to give out a good jab at the enemy, just to finish his point off and give a good one-two of war spirit.

"All humans should die." Zuri entered into the console, but it seemed that as he did, it was the moment the wires, barely holding together as is, finally gave out.

"*%%$&amp;#&amp;&amp;&amp;&amp;yyTT"

The signal was ceasing to deliver, and it showed as a string of gibberish on both of their screens. Maybe some facet of the universe had decided their fates should no longer be intertwined, or decided that it could set up for a longer, harder fall from hubris.

Similarly, the lights on Jamie's machine started to flicker in and out. The backup generator beeped at her a few times to tell her that the electricity had gone out. It was only lucky her radio was plugged into the same backup that her computer was. She tried typing into the radio back, assuming the glitch was because of the power outage, but it came up all the same.

** ###$$$!^^&amp;&amp;*( #)$?**

"! $%) $) )#&amp;$&amp;&amp;#( _"

***$)!)#*%&amp;%&amp;&amp;**

"!)#(G)(F&amp;#N)"

**)#()%*T(G_FGGF**

Zuri's hand's flew down on the sides of the machine and he screamed at it. Why was it doing this? He spun the machine around with little effort and looked at the wires. He could've sworn he'd put them together better, but it looked like his half–assed job was about done working in his favor.

After a few more moments of contemplating, Zuri gave up.

His contact with Jay was over probably over.

Jamie was a little more hopeful. She grabbed her sticky notes and started writing down once or twice- and then over and over again: _Ilamaj Zuri_, she'd remember his name.

She told herself she'd find him.

She'd probably be terrified to meet him in person, she supposed, but maybe one day.


	4. Chapter 4

Zuri flew out of his bunk that morning, determined to make his already–glitch machine work again. He still wasn't the best with machinery, and he didn't actually feel like messing with the wires again, but he was convinced that if he messed with the wires again, it'd give in and obey his wishes.

He hit the keys for a few minutes, sent a few basic greetings, but it was to no avail. He wasn't getting any replies and after waiting a few short, impatient–ridden minutes, he slammed his hands down on the keys and cursed any gods in existence.

Field Marshal Gamee started awake and glared at Private Zuri for waking him.

Zuri snarled, left the bunkroom and made his way to the front deck. Gamee looked at the door, and then at the machine.

In the hall, Zuri ran his hand along the wall with an urge to destroy something– _anything_– to somehow cheer him up. Though destroying things hadn't quite worked before, he figured anything to get his mind off of "Jamie" and the machine would be of great benefit. He didn't understand how his thoughts kept flipping from eager to dark and back again– why did this machine affect him so much?

Maybe it wasn't the machine, maybe it was _her_. Even though he kept finding reasons to be suspicious of _her_, he still could not help feeling so… attached. He was hoping the machine would work again, so that if he died in battle, he'd be able to give a proper farewell beforehand. Dying in battle seemed less and less appealing as the days dragged on, though. Was she corrupting his mindset? Or was he doing that to himself? If he could help it, he thought the best thing to do was live through the invasion of the human planet injury–less, and then go back to Sanghelios and find her. If she really was a trick, or if she was some sort of disappointment, at least he'd be some sort of warhero. Maybe he'd become one of the more elite Sanheili classes– maybe he'd get to wield a plasma sword like his commanding officer, and be able to use it for real war instead of fixing wires on a shitty machine.

When he stopped wondering aimlessly in thought and finally headed towards the deck, he found it primarily empty, save for a few Unggoys. He thought it odd to see them there so early in the morning, but he didn't think it _too_ odd. The Unggoys shot him some slight glares, but that was normal. He figured they were just jealous because they were tiny and had to wear facemasks to breathe on covenant ships. He figured he'd be angry too if he had to wear those masks everywhere.

He sighed and just stood there in the middle of the deck, if he had an initial reason for walking to the front deck, he'd forgotten it. The Unggoys, who were in a close-knit little crowd before, disbursed to different sides of the room. He still didn't think about them, though, and walked to a window to look out. He thought maybe space would make him feel better–being cramped up in that bunk for so long was probably why he felt crazy. He put his hand up to the window, but heard a _thunk_ as he did. He looked down to see a sticky grenade, inches from his feet.

* * *

"Hello? Helloooooo?" Jamie sent, but she didn't get anything back. She'd woken up sort of late that morning. He alarm had failed her and no one of her friends or family had called her to tell her anything. If she didn't know any better, she would've thought they were all dead, considering they were usually such busybody early birds that kept calling her. Since her new friend wasn't responding she figured she should just work on a project or something until she got a blip.

She thought about maybe going on vacation once she had enough money. Maybe she could go see Private Zuri whenever his service time was up or when the war ended. She wondered what type of planet he lived on. She thought that maybe she should ask him next time– it'd all be one big coincidence if he was on reach, too.

After all, what are the odds?

* * *

Zuri leapt away as his instincts guided him to do. He hadn't been in a lot of firefights, but it'd been drilled in him from the training back on his home planet. With the loud, and still yet surprising screech of the grenade– blue sparks filled the air. If Zuri didn't know any better, he would've thought he'd inhaled them. After all, his breaths were on fire, and his eyes danced around the room quicker than rest of him could recover. He spotted the Unggoys moving about, as they rushed to try and surround him.

In both panic and adrenaline, he jumped to his feet, and then rolled behind a machine. Which, if did nothing to actually slow the Unggoy's pace, would make them hesitate– they expected to have the jump on him and losing that meant they lost their only advantage. The machine would provide a little cover if they were armed– sadly, he had no idea which console he was behind and how much damage it'd cause the ship if drilled with plasma holes.

Zuri got as low to the floor as he could while still being able to remain mobile and listened carefully to the soft footsteps that attempted silence– and the muffled, filtered breathing of the Unggoys' masks. One was approaching much faster on the right, so he inched toward that side of his cover and waited. His heart beat fast and his first and foremost thought was "_Where is the rest of the crew? Wouldn't they have heard the explosion_?"

The Unggoy started to round the corner, but Zuri was faster. Zuri grabbed the ankles of the Unngoy and pulled towards himself, which threw the Unngoy onto his back and sent a pre–charged plasma blast barreling towards the ceiling. He procured the Plasma Pistol and crushed the Unngoy's facemask to suffocate him and turned to the other side. Another would approach the console soon, both curious and knowing of the other Unngoy's fate. It was possible the next Unngoy was running away since the Plasma blast fire Vertically and the other Unngoy was on the ground, very loudly gasping for air.

He peaked over the console and then ducked back down immediately as another Plasma blast flew by and hit a different console. He started to charge his own pistol and peaked around again, sending a shot to the second approaching traitor. To Zuri's surprise, the enemy was also prepared. As the Unngoy fell, dead from a single shot, Zuri's pistol exploded and singed his hands and lower jaw.

He yelled and shook his hands to try and cool them.

He stood up from behind the console, pissed and already injured so _to hell with it_. He was ready to snap the neck of the third rebellious underling no matter how many times it shot at him. They met eyes, seething dark orbs, and the other Unngoy turned to run in a panic. Zuri didn't have to run very hard before he was on the Unngoy's heels, and slammed the smaller alien against the wall with one backhand.

His hand grabbed the Unngoy's face and hit is against the wall again.

Still alive, the little alien tried to wiggle away, screaming, saying that it was all unfair.

"You die for attacking your superiors," Zuri growled, he dragged the Unngoy back by the leg and put his hands around its neck. He started to squeeze.

"No such thing! No such thing!" It screamed as it struggled to breathe. "My brothers have died for... nothi…ng…" his last exhale was his last word, and then nothing. Zuri snapped its neck just to be sure, and then watched the little body as it slumped down to the floor.

It had no effect on him. Unngoys were nothings.

When he returned to his bunk, he found his CO fooling with the machine wires.

"Oh, Zuri, I think I fixed it," he said as he looked up from the floor. "You crossed some wire wrong, and it messed up the interface. It was still picking up signal, though, pinging off some human military satellite." Gamee got off the floor sheathed his plasma sword and walked to put it back in its rightful place with the rest of his armor. Gamee laughed, "You know, hah, you might've picked up a _human transmission_ at one point."

"Haha," Zuri sarcastically replied as he approached the machine. He started to think again that maybe he wasn't talking to a Sangheili female that entire time. There was some weight in his chest, almost like a pang of guilt. If he really had been talking to a human female– regarding a _human_– a human _female_– as anything other than wicked and useless– was that blasphemy? He told himself over and over again that the human satellite could easily have picked up and send a signal from Sanghelios– or some other secret Sangheili–occupied planet, if manipulate correctly. He shook the thought away though, as something else began to bug him.

What bugged him the most, more than Jay or what she could possibly be was his commanding officer, field marshal Gamee. Zuri looked at the fixed machine for a moment, knowing that it being fixed meant he'd likely not be able to talk to Jay again, and decided to look at how Gamee had fixed the machine. When he leaned to look behind it, Gamee assured him it was definitely fixed, but Zuri wanted to look closer. His eyes danced around the puddles of Unngoy slobber, now a dried crust below the wires, and saw tiny, miniscule specs of blood around them.

Why would an Unngoy bleed while cutting wires? Would an Unngoy take off its mask for even a second to bite the wires of a machine? Zuri remembered the Unngoys he'd offed moments before– their gasping for air at their last moments immediately after their masks were removed.

Zuri then wondered how Gamee knew which wires to cross to fix the machine.

It was likely that Gamee could have sabotaged the other machines onboard the ship, too, including the interface that allowed communication with the other ships I their fleet.

But, what reason would Gamee have to cut off communication with the other ships?

It didn't matter; they'd be arriving on the human planet within a matter of hours.

* * *

Jamie tried again at the speakers, but there was still no reply. She considered that she could try typing in her other friend's coordinates again, since that was what had somehow caught Ilamaj's coordinates in the first place. She contemplated whether or not she was losing the signal to him for good, or if it'd just connect like it had the last time. She thought that maybe Ilamaj was busy and would reply sooner or later. But she was impatient and starting to worry– maybe he was landing soon on where he was fighting and couldn't talk– maybe he already landed and something happened to him.

She dug around the stickynotes she'd scribbled Ilamaj's name all over, grabbed the scrap of paper by the radio that had Steven's coordinates, and typed those in again. Still bouncing off the old military satellite, static sprung to life and almost made her jump back.

"Hello? ...Hello?" she spoke into the receiver, nervous about whether or not she'd hear a voice or another ping on her radio screen. The static gave way to a voice, to Jamie's slight disappointment, but also started to scare her. Steven's voice was cracking, terrified, and breathing fast.

"Jamie! There you are! I've been trying to reach you!" Steven spoke so fast that Jamie could barely understand him.

"What? What happened? Slow down Steven."

"I think reach is under attack or something!" there was loud static between his words, "There's something outside and me and a few neighbors are holed up in some barn house."

Jamie couldn't believe her ears. "But… this is Reach, we _couldn't_ be attacked! We–"

"Jamie there's no time to think about it, okay? It's just happening! Lock your doors and hide. If there's any luck on this planet, they'll overlook us."


	5. Chapter 5

Jamie started to breathe heavily in the storage room. She knew the Aliens had touched ground and were fighting the military on Reach.

She knew when they landed.

She knew they were right outside her house.

Her breath got heavier and heavier as her front door opened, and she feared the sheet she was hiding under wouldn't be enough to shield or even hide her self from even the weakest of them. She could feel the floorboards shake as they entered the other room. Heavy, angry foot–steps, shuttered across the hardwood and made its way closer and closer.

Her eyes darted back and forth as if they could see from beneath the sheet. She knew they were armed– they were always armed. She knew they would kill her if they found her, or at least she believed that to be true.

There was a structure close–by when the ship touched down. Zuri let his legs do all the work when jumping from the Type-52 Carrier. The ground was soft, dusty, and it almost reminded him of home.

First mission was to examine the nearby structure, to make sure it was clear and then move out from there. Zuri followed on Gamee's heel as they entered the small building and started to look around. There was a room covered in sheets and a second floor. Gamee signaled silently for Zuri to move up to the second floor, and for an Unngoy to sit guard by the stairs. Gamee sent a few Jackals farther into the house down the hallway.

The two other surviving Elites from their ship spread out around the structure, secured exits, checked out other structures nearby, set up a perimeter.

Zuri went up the stairs slowly, watched the wood bend and creak beneath his feet. His eyes were downcast– almost sad. He looked up at the door in front of him. He had to be on alert. If he wasn't, how would he go home to find Jay on Sangheilios?

Looking at all the equipment in this building was strange– there was so much of it, but it looked so primitive compared to the things the covenant carried. He picked up a speaker and then set it down. There were some strange letters scribbled on numerous pieces of paper, and he was enticed and curious and picked them up. They could all stick together and be pulled apart easily.

He pocketed them.

Little did he know that mere words might be his undoing.

He started to mess with it, picking up the receiver and input system and looking under it and at all the keys and systems. He looked at the set of coordinates punched in, which looked oddly familiar. He could have sworn he'd seen those numbers before, but he'd seen a lot of numbers recently and he was _tired_.

Jamie could hear the footsteps nearing ever closer. There was loud thunking as the creature moved from side to side, uncovering different sheets and looking under them. It was going to find her if it continued.

Its feet were barely visible as it passed by her, she could see the scaly two-toed foot from under just the edge of the blanket. It moved passed her, removed the sheet from a machine of hers nearby.

In the moment of both weakness and strength, her adrenaline built up and carried her, her arm threw her blanket off and onto the large, tall creature, and she darted towards the stairs before he could recover.

A shorter, much less fearful creature was by the stairs and was shocked to see her rush by, she turned the corner of the stairs quicker than it could raise a plasma pistol. The Unggoy aimed much too quickly to hit, and the stairs and the bannister sizzled around her as she made her way to the second floor.

A set of hurried footsteps flew up the stairs behind him, and the door shut tight.

Jamie Trell huffed as she held the knob and faced the door.

They turned to see each other, for a split second, both terrified. She observed his terrifying seven-foot stature, his 'split–lip' mandibles, his monstrous hands. He looked at her beady dark eyes, the strange short human neck, hands with too many digits, too slender and terrifying. Both thinking the same thing: _this is the monster we fight against_.

Her thoughts started to think– military satellite– important information– I have to erase it all. She stepped forward one step, and a terrified Zuri held up his plasma pistol towards her. She took a gulp and didn't look in his direction and ran to her radio equipment.

As fast as she could, she erased her coordinates, she took the battery out of the radio and threw it across the room. She started to put her tendril hands flat on the desk, shifting to the right and to the left as she looked for something. She looked up to the Sangheili, worried. The sticky notes she wrote were missing, and she wouldn't be able to destroy them.

The handle on the door began to jiggle as someone tried to figure out how to open it.

She ran back to the door and held it tight and closed. It almost opened, but she leaned herself against the door to try and block the other Sangheili from entering.

Blue and glowing emerged from the pit of her stomach, and suddenly it was all red. She only looked down at herself for a moment, before her all crumpled and she became like a ragdoll. The door opened behind her, pushing her stiffened body aside as she lay dying on the floor. Field Marshall Gamee wiggled into the room and looked at the human on the ground, freshly skewered with the plasma sword.

Jamie heaved and looked at the two as they conversed in some strange, backwards language. Her ears unable to process their words, the blood pouring out of her faster and faster, and all she could do was stare at them. Her brain processed less and less thoughts and her eyes went dark.

Ilamaj looked down at her for a split second while his CO tried to talk to him. He felt bad for that strange creature– it was scared– it was hurried. Is this what the prophets have us do? Is this what the gods require of us?

Jamie examined her wound again, and then looked up one final time, blinking slower and slower. She only had one last thought before dying: _I hope someone kills you... I hope… Ilamaj kills you._

And she shut her eyes for the last time.


	6. Chapter 6 (Epilogue)

The Fall of Reach was a big success for the Covenant.

Out of all of the casualties during Reach's fall, Zuri and Gamee both survived. Due to their ship's lack of communication, they were late to the fight, even, and though they were forgiven for this since there had been much mutiny on their ship, and electronic error, and somehow no engineer.

After the planet was glassed they were heading to another location outside of Human–controlled space. Their ship needed to be repaired and looked over by higher ups, the mutiny investigated, many consoles replaced, and the crew replenished with more soldiers before it would be deemed fit for battle again.

The Unngoy were quiet and thankful to be alive. Any Kig-Yar left were tired, and the ship didn't have any Jiralhanae to begin with, another reason the broken consoles actually saved them. If they hadn't any broken machines they would've likely been thrown to the front as cannon fodder that the more important soldiers would just sweep over the bodies of later as they carve their path to heroism.

Zuri held tight to a scrap of paper he found on Reach, some small little relic, with the letters fading more and more every day. Gamee, his CO, approached him on the deck.

They were alone, and it was peaceful.

Gamee looked nervous, and it made Zuri both curious and afraid.

Gamee took a deep breath and looked around to double–check that no one could overhear. "I've made a terrible mistake, and there is no escaping it."

Zuri was confused at that. _What kind of mistake? Reach is glassed. The ships that escaped Reach were being chased down by fleets; We _won_. _"What are you talking about Field Marshall? We were successful!"

"You can call me by my first name right now, Ilamaj, it is Sama'i, and I want you to remember it," Sama'i Gamee nodded and avoided Zuri's eyes.

"It's disrespectful," Zuri was taken aback by his CO's openness, his informality was even more nerve wracking then the personal talk.

"Not between blood," Sama'i Gamee turned and looked him in the eye.

Zuri stumbled back– shocked– agape. Between blood? Were they of blood? There is no way they'd be allowed to know that!

"I am not the ship's Field Marshall, I am the engineer, and I am the one who started the mutiny upon this ship. I wasn't supposed to be here in the first place."

Zuri was terrified. _Brother? Mutiny? Field Marshall is an Engineer?_ It was so much to take in, but as it settled it made more and more sense.

The Sangheili shoved out the airlock wasn't an Unngoy's uprising, he was shoved out to be kept quiet about what happened.

"When was this? Was I sleeping during the whole thing? How could I have not seen or heard it while in my bunk?"

"It was only luck you hadn't met the other Sangheili on board and did not know their names before… before they figured out I wasn't supposed to be there."

"So you killed them? All of them?"

"I just wanted to meet you, my brother, and I thought you were going to die in the war– that this was my last chance!"

Zuri could say nothing in reply.

"Our ancestors would be ashamed of me, Ilamaj, but you– you still have a chance."

"You're right they would be ashamed of you," Zuri became angry. Who was he angry with? He wasn't entirely sure. What Sama'i Gamee did was wrong, but he was his _brother_. What about the rules that kept Gamee from him? What about Sangheili culture that insisted they not know, or that they die in war?

Zuri turned and walked back towards the bunks, he could not stand here with his brother any longer.

"When we land, I'm sneaking off the ship to go live in hiding. You should come with me."

Zuri could only look back at him in disgust before making his way back to his bunk.

He sat there and let everything swarm in his head. Maybe he should run away with his brother, but then he'd never be able to meet Jay on the home planet.

Then again, he may die later in the war, and running away may be the only way to survive until he could return to Sangheilios if the war ended and they forgot about him going AWOL.

He sighed and tried to take his mind off of things. Maybe he should try the machine, he thought, even though he knew it was futile to try and contact "Jay."  
Maybe there was something else he could do, though.

He unraveled the little piece of paper from the human planet, and looked at it. It was so primitive– so useless– and yet maybe it was important.

He was curious.

So he set the paper under a little scanner on the lower part of the Human Translation Machine, and tried to adjust it right side up to the best of his ability.

He let the paper sit there for a while as it read the little note slowly. The machine made some noises he'd never heard before as it labored over her handwriting. Zuri looked up at the screen as it placed the letters one by one. It looked like "ILA" and then it read "ILAZI," and he could almost feel in his heart where it was going to end up. At first it was odd, and then he felt his legs become heavy.

"ILAZRI"

He'd seen other humans on reach– lighter ones– that one in that attic, was that dark for a human? Its beady eyes, its dark beady eyes– _dark eyes_.

He stumbled away from the machine onto his bunk.

"ILAMZRI"

Human satellite.

"ILAMAZRI"

Human translation machine.

"ILAMAJ ZURI"

He'd been a fool.

His hands shook, his eyes were wide in terror. He could barely fathom as everything he'd said and done flooded back to him trifold. He snatched the note and held it in his hand, as if it were evidence that someone would actually understand. His hands still shook as he crumpled the tiny piece of paper. Tears started to well up in his eyes as every thing hit him.

_What have I done? __She's Dead. Humans are disgusting._

_ She's Human? __I'm an Idiot._

_I really… I… I could've saved her. __Why would I want to save her? She was good._

_ This is blasphemy. I liked Jamie._

_The prophets would have me executed, they will know… __He prophets know nothing. Jamie was good…_

_The prophets didn't know Jamie. __I don't even know my own brother. I did not know Jamie._

_ Jamie was a human… and my brother was the one who killed her… __I am a disgrace to the Sangheili._

_ I am a disgrace to my parents and my brother._

_I am a disgrace._

Zuri pushed everything aside.

None of it mattered.

He headed back to the deck to see his brother again.

"Brother," Zuri said as he approached the deck.

Gamee was surprised and somewhat pleased to hear Zuri being so informal to him. He turned around and smiled, and did not notice the look in his brother's eye.

"Can I borrow your sword to mess with the machine again?" Zuri's voice wavered, his lies weren't as obvious as he thought, though.

"But I fixed it already, Brother, there is no need."

"Humor me, Sama'i."

Sama'i nervously reached for the energy sword, the one that wasn't even his in the first place. Something made him hesitate, something dark sitting there in his brother's eyes.

"Sama'i."

Sama'i Gamee handed the handles to his brother, and Zuri almost hesitated to take it from his grasp. Zuri was shaking as he took it from him, and Sama'i would know his mistake before the plasma was even activated. Sama'i took a step back, afraid for himself, but he was wrong.

"Our Ancestors would be ashamed of both of us," Zuri word's shook, afraid.

Those were his last words.

Zuri turned the sword on himself, stabbed himself in his center. The pain was so much it brought tears from his eyes.

"Brother!" Sama'i Gamee rushed forwards to save his brother, he tossed the sword handles aside and put his hands on his brother's wound.

Regardless of what he tried, Sama'i was soon alone on the deck.


End file.
